Press Trust Of India / Dhaka May 08, 2009, 0:55 IST
Proposing new railway and seaport links with Bangladesh, India has said “constructive talks” on the long-pending transit issue could be resumed once the next government takes over in New Delhi and argued that enhanced connectivity will bring “huge financial gains” to Dhaka.
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“Transportation of goods through railway is cheaper than any other modes of transport,” Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty told reporters after a meeting with Commerce Minister Faruq Khan here last night.

Chakravarty suggested establishment of a new railway connection between Akhaura in central Bangladesh and Agartala in Tripura for enhanced trade and said that “constructive” talks on connectivity or transit could resume after a new government took office in India.

“Everybody now acknowledges that connectivity is necessary. If Bangladesh offers its roads and Chittagong Port for regional use, money will not be a problem for building required infrastructure,” he said.

He said New Delhi would like to see the upgrading of the northeastern Chittagong Port as well as southwestern Mongla Port so that India could use these to transport its goods to the northeastern states. “There are many institutions to provide funding for upgrading the ports.”

The Indian envoy emphasised the importance of “political will” in making the longstanding proposal for providing transit through Bangladesh territory that, as he argued, would fetch “huge financial gains” for Dhaka. Referring to study reports, he said Bangladesh could earn revenue between $1.5 billion and $2 billion for providing Chittagong Port for regional use.

This is a long pending issue, but decades have passed and the Bangladeshis have yet to make up their mind whether to give India transit or not. They stand to gain by it but their anti India stance is coming in the way of developing good economic relations.